Take a Peek:

Take a walk on the moon in Concord

TAKE A PEEK: A panel of the moon greets visitors to the “Lunar Recon” exhibit at the McAuliffe-Shepard Discovery Center in Concord.

Take a walk on the moon with The McAuliffe-Shepard Discovery Center's new exhibition, "Lunar Recon: Spacecraft, Craters and Cosmic Rays."

The Concord showing highlights National Aeronautics and Space Administration's (NASA) scientific discoveries via the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter, which was launched June 18, 2009, as a preliminary step toward returning astronauts to the moon. The orbiter was designed to map out possible landing sites and characterize the radiation hazards astronauts would encounter as a result of cosmic rays and other high-energy sources that flood the lunar surface. Today the orbiter is in a two-hour polar orbit around the moon.

The exhibit, developed in partnership with the University of New Hampshire and NASA, included two one-foot murals representing the nearside and farside of the lunar surface.

Activities, mini lunar talks and meet-and-greet opportunities with scientists also are planned. Visual displays and hands-on experiences take visitors on a journey through the solar system, with a look at how scientists and engineers team up to design, build, test and send a spacecraft to the moon.

Admission to the exhibit, at 2 Institute Drive, is free with center admission fees, which are $10 for adults, $7 for ages three to 12; $9 for ages 62 and older and 13 through college-age; free for ages two and younger, with other discounts offered.

For more information about the exhibit, log onto starhop.com or call 271-7832.